RAWALPINDI: The court of a judicial magistrate on Thursday rejected the police request for a 30-day physical remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi and sent him to jail on Judicial remand in 12 cases registered against him following May 9 riots.
Qureshi was presented before Duty Magistrate Syed Jahangir Ali’s court in the GHQ attack case under strict security. At the outset of the hearing, police sought a 30-day physical remand of the former foreign minister but the plea was opposed by the lawyers of the PTI vice president.
The lawyers argued that those named in the May 9 violence cases were acquitted and urged the court to acquit Shah Mahmood Qureshi. On Wednesday, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice chairman, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, was manhandled and rearrested from outside Adiala jail.
Punjab’s RA Bazaar police station cops rearrested Shah Mahmood Qureshi after his release from Adiala Jail on bail in cypher case on Supreme Court orders. The release came after police pleaded to end the 15-day detention orders of the former foreign minister under 3-MPO.
‘Physically and mentally tortured’
During proceedings, PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi told a Rawalpindi court on Thursday that he was “physically and mentally tortured†in prison last night.
The PTI leader said this while recording his statement during a hearing at the Rawalpindi Judicial Complex.
Qureshi was released from Adiala Jail on Wednesday after the Supreme Court had approved his post-arrest bail in the cypher case. However, the PTI leader, who tried to talk to the Punjab police on multiple occasions, was “pushed and whisked away†from outside the prison.
It was later found out that the former foreign minister was arrested in connection with a case pertaining to the attack on General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi on May 9. He was initially moved to the Cantt police station by the police, who maltreated him.
Today, Qureshi was brought to the court of Duty Magistrate Syed Jahangir Ali in a police armoured vehicle. A video shared by the PTI on social media showed policemen escorting a hand-cuffed Qureshi to the court.
Speaking to media persons ahead of the hearing, the PTI leader’s daughter Meher Bano Qureshi expressed displeasure at the security arrangement made outside the court. “It seems as if they are presenting a terrorist,†she said.
“No one is allowed to enter the Judicial Complex,†Meher Bano pointed out, adding that the police’s behaviour was disappointing.
Talking about Wednesday’s arrest, she said the scenes had created a “joke out of Pakistan in a neighbouring countryâ€. “Even the neighbouring country would be wondering how a former foreign minister is being treated,†Meher Bano regretted.
The hearing
As the hearing commenced, Qureshi said he wanted to record his statement before the court. He highlighted that three judges of the apex court had approved his bail against surety bonds of Rs1 million.
The PTI leader highlighted that before he could obtain the robkar (release order), it emerged that orders had been issued to detain Qureshi under the Maintenance of Public Order.
“How am I a threat to the public? I have been in jail for several months,†Qureshi said. He added that he had been told in Adiala Jail that the MPO orders against him would be withdrawn but the date was later extended to Dec 27 instead of Dec 26.
Qureshi said he had been detained from inside Adiala Jail illegally, highlighting that he had been a member of the Parliament five times. The PTI leader further stated that police officials had kicked and ridiculed him, claiming that he wasn’t taken to a doctor despite multiple requests.
“A team came to me saying that they wanted to record a statement on the May 9 violence. These people want to nominate me in cases related to May 9,†he said. “I was in Karachi on May 9 … my wife was undergoing surgery (that day).â€
The PTI vice chairman also alleged that he was kept in a cold cell last night and wasn’t allowed to sleep. “I was tortured mentally and physically,†he claimed.
